I Am Starting Topical spironolactone--will Take Few Months To Tell

[hairblues]

quick update

i had some shedding this past month..mostly short hairs which is always scarey to me.

I upped the amount of spironolactone I use and I 'think' my hair is better rooted now...I can't tell for sure.

hair still looks better then baseline although wish it would have filled in more.

here is the things I may be adding to my regimen (one at a time)
1. topical finasteride
2. Loreal Stemoxydine I ordered from France.
3. Derma stamping (not sure but I think 1.5 lightly-to just pin prick 1x a week no topicals)

The topical finasteride is the thing I will add next because my first priority is to make sure I am fighting DHT as much as I can..if it works/fails I will be sure to report back and be guinea pig as my Dr is supervising me and prescribing this to me.

(Also I am NOT having children this is a decision I have made long ago and it has not changed at my advanced age of 45..but for younger women just be cautious to do research on both short term and long term effects for birth defects--i am not aware how long this stays in system if goes systemic you have to look into that yourself with any of these anti-androgen)

I dont want to sound doom and gloom about my shedding it is definitely NOT as bad as it was before I started my minoxidil or my topical spironolactone/estrodial (weak one).

I hope this helps people starting out.

 

[hairblues]

I have officially added topical finasteride last night to my regimen.
Cross fingers--will keep you posted how it works in conjunction.

 

[Armando Jose]

I have officially added topical finasteride last night to my regimen.
Cross fingers--will keep you posted how it works in conjunction.

Good luck,

 

[hairblues]

My shed today was SOOO improved yesterday and today...obviously its not from finasteride already lol that would be ridiculous BUT just sharing because I do think my periodic shed is much better...HOPEFULLY that means I will see some thicker growth (cross fingers) follow like last time.

 

[hairblues]

Yay girl. I hope you will see improvments.

really weird roller coster....I don't get it. I hope I see thickening.
Purchased stuff to start derma rolling

 

[hairblues]

Hmmmm shedding like crazy today all miniaturized hairs some are super fine and like 1' long (garbage really) then a few are like a little longer and good hairs-which THAT sucks.

I am going to just try and chill out use the topical finasteride for a few weeks, maybe increase my Minoxidil to 2x a day and just see what happens.

I also have stemoxydine(not sure how to spell) I can start to use but I want to give the finasteride at least 2 weeks incase it triggers a worse shed as I know oral finasteride can do.

Game plan is to figure out the stuff by Fall and then maybe hop on oral meds for a few months-to year until something better is available (brotzu, folic) i

I am at that point where no one can really tell--BUT if i get worse its going to be noticeable so its a precarious time period not to mess around too much
(DAMN BROTZU @2016 LOL)

I am into month 9 I think with minoxidil so hopefully its a the minoxidil doing its stuff in good way.

 

[hairblues]

I am not sure what is up with the short hair sheds--it almost feels like so many in short time that it cant be average hair loss progression....so I am thinking it is 1. periodic shedding of treatments which i have spoken to quite a fw people on here and say 'stick it out' that it is a good thing or 2. seasonal shedding which is also not 'hair loss'

here is a quote i found about seasonal shedding from an old post.

It's normal for you to have sheds, with or without minoxidil actually. They did a study awhile back showing that hair is thickest in the winer/spring (more hairs in anagen phase) and thinnest in summer/fall (fewer in anagen). I'd post a link but I can't find the study at the moment.

Those of us nursing thin heads of hair are more likely to notice these changes than people with a full head of hair. I think many of the shedding stories guys report on the forums is tied to some degree to this natural shedding cycle. I just want to point that out because I think the instinct is to assume that the shedding has something to do with treatments you are using. And it might at first, but I'm guessing once you've stabilized on treatments shedding fluctuations probably have more to do with seasonal changes.

Unless you are losing more than 100 hairs a day, I wouldn't concern yourself too much with shedding. It happens and as long as it's not excessive, it's not a big deal.


My hair loss does not seem like more than 100 a day but I was/am concerned the ratio of short to long hairs. But going to keep on keeping on and hope for best over next few months.

 

[Nano123]

Hmmmm shedding like crazy today all miniaturized hairs some are super fine and like 1' long (garbage really) then a few are like a little longer and good hairs-which THAT sucks.

I am going to just try and chill out use the topical finasteride for a few weeks, maybe increase my Minoxidil to 2x a day and just see what happens.

I also have stemoxydine(not sure how to spell) I can start to use but I want to give the finasteride at least 2 weeks incase it triggers a worse shed as I know oral finasteride can do.

Game plan is to figure out the stuff by Fall and then maybe hop on oral meds for a few months-to year until something better is available (brotzu, folic) i

I am at that point where no one can really tell--BUT if i get worse its going to be noticeable so its a precarious time period not to mess around too much
(DAMN BROTZU @2016 LOL)

I am into month 9 I think with minoxidil so hopefully its a the minoxidil doing its stuff in good way.

I too am having a bad shed but it's less than 100 hairs per day, but it is freaking me out as I had a month or two when I was barely losing 30 hairs or so per day, any ways it is better than no treatments at all and shedding 200 hairs or more per day. I don't expect it to resolve any time soon as I hopped on duta which will cause telogen effluvium soon but seeing hairs on my clothes and pillow again makes me so depressed, btw did you get a dermaroller or stamp?

 

[hairblues]

Okay so it seems the short hair shedding is decreasing past few days.

I still shed a normal amount of long hairs and I few short.

Just to reiterate the shed was mostly short hairs not the long ones--the long ones it was 'normal' loss.


So I am 2 weeks in with topical finasteride and so far no negative side effects.

the dosage is weird and when i see my Dr in a few weeks I have to get more specific with him.

I may be using too much product...as no sides this is probably not a big deal.


I am holding off adding anything else at moment I am going to stick with topical finasteride, spironolactone and minoxidil for now.

also focus on getting iron up over 70....last check it was 60 but sure it dropped as I have not been consistent with supplements.

also my vitamins D (I'm deficient in both)


I am going to try and wash hair every day this week to get a real idea of hair shed--its easier for me in shower to see them and have an idea.

I think (crossing fingers) the finasteride addition may have helped with my shedding..(I hope I do not have to come back and eat those words lol)

I do think I lost a little ground but still better than I was before treatment and I see little hairs extremely short (like few millimeters) very hard to see that I can not tell if veillus or 'good' hair.

Over all my hair is still not bad and I am thankful for this. These things so far have at least slowed down the process.

I will come back in few weeks to update unless anything significant happens.

 

[hairblues]

Its about a week...its week 3 of finasteride

I am doing fantastic so far this week...

Shedding is way way down (2 hairs in shower yesterday, 5 today) and regrowth is happening.

Part line looks much tighter.

I am not sure yet--I have to wait a month or so and do a photo to compare to my last photos but I think I might be getting better regrowth than last time.

It is hard to say for sure IF it's the minoxidil, spironolactone or the finasteride--BUT I am going to lay odds the finasteride is what I needed to add to the mix as some of my hairs seem to be thickening as they are growing (start out super skinny then getting fatter) I mean I do not know if Minxo does that on its own...

I have to be patient--give it one more month to know for sure what is happening but not going to lie right now i have my hopes up from what i am seeing.

The hardest thing about hair loss might be the ups/downs of thinking you are progressing then you think you are deteriorating and vice versa.

For now its an up swing and I have to just wait and see if the next month I get strong improvement.

 

[hairblues]

Update

I'm doing great

Hair is filling in pretty nicely (comparatively speaking)

Shedding is way down.

No sides.

 

[bellei]

I have officially added topical finasteride last night to my regimen.
Cross fingers--will keep you posted how it works in conjunction.

hi hairblues, where do you get your topical finasteride?

 

[Suzanne Albert]

I'm allergic to minoxidil. What is a good alternative?

 

[Afro_Vacancy]

I'm allergic to minoxidil. What is a good alternative?

Are you sure that you're not allergic to the other ingredients normally dissolved with minoxidil, such as propylene glycol?

 

[Georgie]

@hairblues - your doctor is prescribing a topical spironolactone / estradiol spray? I would be interested in this. what is it called?

Me too.
I can’t take oral spironolactone because it makes me really tired, dehydrated and sick. Need a good topical.

 

[mikes23]

@hairblues jw is spironolactone safe for women? my friends mother is losing hair and want to help her out, but wanted to know if spironolactone is safe? is it just blood pressure and potassium levels I have to watch? do you just add extra electrolytes to be safe? are their other health concerns to watch out for? Also are you seeing more results? She is older and not having kids anymore so I was thinking about telling the doctor to give her finasteride, you ever consider this route? I researched topical spironolactone cream back in the day, but any insights on taking it in pill form would be appreciated. thank you

 

[Georgie]

@hairblues jw is spironolactone safe for women? I have a family member who is losing hair and want to help her out, but wanted to know if spironolactone is safe? is it just blood pressure and potassium levels I have to watch? do you just add extra electrolytes to be safe? are their other health concerns to watch out for? Also are you seeing more results? My family member is older and not having kids anymore so I was thinking about telling the doctor to give her finasteride, you ever consider this route? I researched topical spironolactone cream back in the day, but any insights on taking it in pill form would be appreciated. thank you

Depends on your tolerance and preexisting health.

 

[mikes23]

@Georgie it's not for me, it is for my friends mother. I can tell she is losing her so I want to tell my friend about certain treatments for him to ask the doctor about. But I trust the community and their experiences with certain medications, so I came here first to ask questions.

I have been using finasteride for last 4 years and just added 5% min. back then I tried Kirkland 5% and it burned my scalp so much I washed it off in 10 mins and never tried it again. I recently started with 2% Rogaine to see if my scalp would tolerate it and it did but in 4 months time I didn't see much results so I have now switched to 5% Rogaine. The 5% rogaine doesn't burn my scalp so I will give it at least 6 months before I judge the results, and before I decide to add anything else. But I doubt I would ever add spironolactone. I actually ordered RU last year and never used it once. finasteride has done a good job on maintaining the hair I have, so I am alright for now. Just hoping 2018-2019 brings us something better

 

[Baraian]

(I edited this to be more sure)

I have Androgenic alopecia and anemia.
Androgenetic Alopecia confirmed by biopsy and ferritin anemia in blood work.
My Androgenetic Alopecia is deemed 'early' on pathology report.

I have been taking iron for 6 months and got my ferritin up from 12 to 60.
I have been using topical spironolactone with estrodial and melatonin now for about 7 weeks.

I noticed the past 2 weeks my hair shedding has decreased..I 'think' i see some new growth- it's not cosmetically different but when i look in magnifying mirror i see new hairs were i did not see before. Only time will tell what they do. I think active hair follicles is good sign.

I had a lot of short cycling hair this Summer (grows an inch and falls out with white club) this hair loss has slowed down. My hair feels more rooted than before.

I cannot tell for sure if it is the topical spironolactone I am using or that my ferritin is up higher causing the positive changes. Maybe both.

Im going to continue the topical spironolactone spray and i have added 5% minoxidil foam 1x a day.

I am also doing Keto shampoo few times a week and hairmax laser comb (i doubt this is working much)

My thoughts are to stick with this until January/February and possibly switch to oral spironolactone.
I wanted to try topical first to see how i respond.

Hair loss is weird so i have no idea if my positive results are temporary or not..Also i am sure the minoxidil may start to effect shedding going forward from what i have read.

 

[hairwoes]

Have any ladies had any experience with finasteride or saw palmetto (topical or oral) for androgenic alopecia and pcos? If so, what dosage did you take and what results? I've tried both birth control and spirolactone orally but they don't work on me anymore. Many thanks!